Wind Beneath My Wings
by Devaney Walsh
Summary: An AU Trory. The hardest part about being a parent is saying goodbye.


Disclaimer: I own nothing but Kate and Zach.

A/N: Okay so here is a one-shot with the characters from Like Father Like Son.

Read and Enjoy!

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Rory smiled softly as she looked at her sleeping daughter. It was late and she was exhausted but she was completely content and just looking at the baby sleeping peacefully in her crib was enough to make the exhaustion worth it.

She crept out of the room careful not to make any noise. She crossed her fingers as she picked up the baby monitor hoping that she would sleep for at least a few hours.

Walking into the living room she propped up the monitor on the coffee table and went and flopped down onto the couch.

"Is Katie asleep?" Tristan asked.

"Yes and thank God for small miracles."

He smiled as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder "Tired?"

"You have no idea."

"Hmm, I'm pretty sure I do." He replied and laughed softly. Rory reached up and touched his cheek noticing the dark circles around his eyes that matched those around hers.

"She looks like a little angel." Rory said smiling.

"She is an angel, especially when she sleeps for more than an hour."

Rory giggled "I don't think I have ever gone this long without sleep."

"Really? Even in college?"

"Nope, I was a strict believer in 8 hours of sleep a day."

"And that idea just flew out the window." He smirked.

"What about you?"

"Maybe in college, oh and during our honeymoon."

She kissed him "Yeah, but that sleep deprivation was for a whole different reason."

He kissed her back "A very good reason if I remember correctly."

She nodded "A very, very good reason."

"Are you working tomorrow?" she asked after a few minutes.

"No…yes….maybe?" he said. "Honestly right now I'm too tired to even remember what day it is."

"Umm I think it's Tuesday…" she replied "No, wait its Wednesday."

Tristan laughed and Rory clapped her hand over his mouth to keep him from waking the baby.

"Do you remember the day that I got you to play hooky from work and I called in sick and we spent the whole day in bed." He asked.

She smiled wistfully "Yeah, although I do think we had to send you out for supplies eventually."

He laughed again, quietly this time. "And I came back with enough food to keep us there for another month."

She smiled "You forget who you're married to, it would've lasted a week."

He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer "I'm not sure about that," he smiled cockily "maybe we should test that theory out."

She shook her head as he smirked "You forget the part about us being responsible parents now."

"And parents can't have fun?"

"Nope." She replied.

"Are you sure because I must have missed that in the fine print?"

She smirked, something that she had picked up from him over the years. "I'm lying. Parents can have fun, as long as they are really, really quiet."

He kissed her softly "I can be quiet."

She pulled his head down and kissed him roughly, and he didn't resist. She pulled him over so that they were lying on the couch. When he pulled back she shook her head keeping a hand knotted in his hair. "What are you doing?" she asked, out of breath.

"Somebody wants her mommy." He replied gesturing to the baby monitor. She stood up and sighed keeping her grip on his hand as they walked in to the nursery.

Rory leaned over the side of the crib picking up the crying baby and cradling her gently in the crook of her arm. "Shh, baby girl." She cooed to her daughter. "Mommy's here, you don't need to cry, mommy's right here."

Tristan motioned her over to the rocking chair where he was sitting and she sat on his lap as he rocked both his girls back and forth. "Daddy's here too." Rory said to the baby. "Your daddy loves you."

"He sure does." Tristan replied reaching out his hand to stoke his daughter's cheek with his thumb. She was so tiny it scared him to hold her, she looked so fragile.

"It's okay Katie." Rory said again as the baby continued to cry.

"Give her to me." Tristan said and the infant's sobs instantly quieted as she settled into his arms.

"She's a suck up." Rory said, smiling despite her stern voice.

Tristan just smiled rocking back and forth.

"You've got your daddy in the palm of your hand." Rory said leaning over to whisper in her daughter's ear. "He'll do anything for you."

"Anything." Tristan repeated, and honestly rang out so strongly in that one word that Rory believed in it more than she had ever believed in anything.

Tristan rocked the chair back and forth as Kate's eyes started to close. "Daddy loves you." He whispered. "Daddy loves you more than anything. You and mommy are the most important things in my life." Rory smiled and met his eyes.

"I promise baby girl, that I will do my best. I don't promise to be perfect, but I promise that I will protect you and love you for my whole life. I will never stop loving you. Forever and ever." He whispered as the baby drifted off to sleep.

Rory bent down and kissed him softly, and then kissed the tiny hand of their baby girl. They sat there in silence watching their little angel sleep.

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Tristan walked up to the podium almost getting smothered by tulle along the way.

"Good evening everyone!" he announced. "I promise to keep this short, because Kate your Uncle Finn isn't drunk yet and we need to cut the cake." The room laughed and he looked over at his daughter smiling and laughing, holding the hand of her husband, wearing her wedding dress. "I just wanted to thank you all for coming here tonight, to help me send my little girl off. Now your mother and I promised that we wouldn't get sentimental but she just made the whole damn room cry so I refuse to keep my end of the bargain."

He cleared his throat and continued "I am so proud of you baby girl. Of everything that you've done and everything you hope to do. I've been proud of you since the moment you were born and I'll never stop. But as for right now I have a story to tell."

"One night when you were about a month old, you started crying. Your mom and I hadn't slept for a week and so we walked in to the nursery and sat down with you in the rocking chair. Your mom couldn't get you to stop so she handed you to me and you were silent. As I rocked you back and forth I looked at you and made a promise. I said to you 'I promise baby girl, that I will do my best. I don't promise to be perfect, but I promise that I will protect you and love you for my whole life. I will never stop loving you. Forever and ever.' I looked at your little face and you had me hooked. I've loved every minute of being your father, when you took your first steps, when you asked me to play football with you and even when you said to me "Daddy I'm to old to be called Katie.' I wouldn't change a thing." Tristan smiled at his daughter and then at Rory, both had tears in their eyes, and he realized that he did too. "So I promise you again Katie, that I will love you forever, and for always. You will always be my baby girl."

The room broke in to applause and Tristan cleared his throat as it died down. "And Mark?" he said to his son-in-law. "If you hurt my baby girl I'll break your legs." He said and laughed and the room broke out in to laughter as well. He left the podium and walked back to where his wife sat.

"Nice speech." Rory said holding his hand.

"Thanks."

She leaned over and kissed him "You are the best dad and husband in the whole world."

He smiled "I don't know about that."

"Well I do." Rory said adamantly.

"Attention everyone please." The DJ said over the chattering crowd. "Before we cut the cake, it's time for the father daughter dance."

The first notes of the song played out as Tristan walked over to meet Kate in the middle of the dance floor.

"Hi Daddy." She said as the started to dance.

"Hi Katie." He said teasing her.

She smiled "You and mom never told me that story before."

"I had to save something for your wedding day." He replied.

_Did you ever know that you're my hero,  
and everything I would like to be?  
I can fly higher than an eagle,  
'cause you are the wind beneath my wings._

"I love you daddy." Kate said as they both listened to the lyrics of the song.

_It might have appeared to go unnoticed,  
but I've got it all here in my heart.  
I want you to know I know the truth, of course I know it.  
I would be nothing without you._

"I love you to baby girl." He said looking down at his daughter who had tears in her eyes.

_Did you ever know that you're my hero,  
and everything I would like to be?  
I can fly higher than an eagle,  
'cause you are the wind beneath my wings._

"Daddy?" she asked as the song came to an end.

"Yeah?"

"I'll never be too old for you to call me Katie."

Tristan pulled his daughter into a hug as the last notes of the song played. Then Kate walked over to where he husband and the cake were waiting. Tristan watched his baby walk away and he couldn't help but feel sad, it was something that he had learned in parenting, that goodbye's are never easy.

"Sad boy." Rory said walking up to put her arms around him.

"She's all grown up." He replied.

She sighed "Yeah…it makes me wish that we had more."

He smiled at her "We raised her good Ror. We did a great job as parents."

"I know but it's still hard to see my baby going off to do her own thing."

Tristan smiled and sighed "I know."

Just then there was a commotion by the cake. Rory and Tristan looked up to see Zach running away with a huge piece of cake, his sisters veil trailing behind him.

Tristan held back a laugh as he watched his son get chased by the bridesmaids.

Rory stifled a giggle "Correction, it **almost **makes me wish we had more. Now go get your son!"

Tristan smirked "Actually I think he'll learn more of a lesson if we let him get out of this one himself."

END

A/N: The song is Wind Beneath My Wings. Please Review.

Devaney


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